Christmas Day in Bethlehem was marked by Palestinian rocks and iron bars hurled at the car of the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem Fouad Twal Friday as he drove out of Bethlehem after celebrating Christmas Mass. The prelate was not hurt, but the rear of his car was smashed. He raced to the nearest IDF checkpoint near Rachel’s Tomb with a Palestinian gang in pursuit. At the checkpoint, the Palestinians clashed with the Israeli soldiers.
This year’s Christian festivities took place under the shadow of Palestinian terror plaguing the country since September.

Two Palestinians killed attacking Israelis

A Palestinian mother of four smashed her car into an Israeli military patrol outside Silwad near Ramallah. The soldiers scattered and shot her dead. In the southern Gaza sector, Israeli soldiers broke up a violent riot at the Israeli border fence. Palestinian sources reported one dead and nine injured.

Israeli soldier injured by Palestinian motorist

A Palestinian Saturday crashed his car into a group of Givati Battalion soldiers patrolling Route 60 in the Samaria district, injuring one of the soldiers. They shot and wounded the terrorist.

Jerusalem police shot Palestinian knifeman tailing Jews

A Palestinian terrorist was shot dead Saturday morning while attempting to stab police on guard at Kikar Tzahal outside the Old City wall. He was seen tailing Jewish worshippers and apprehended by police officers who asked for his identity papers. The Palestinian then pulled a knife and tried to stab an officer. Not far from there, outside Jaffa Gate, two Palestinian terrorists inflicted multiple stabbing wounds on three Israelis, two of whom later died in hospital.

Three terror attacks thwarted in Jerusalem, Hebron and Samaria

Israeli security forces aborted three stabbing attacks Sunday in the Old City of Jerusalem, at the Cave of the Patriarchs in Hebron and outside Maaleh Shomron. Two Palestinian female terrorists and one male were detained moments before they started slashing their Israeli victims. However, an Israeli soldier of 18 was stabbed and injured by a Palestinian during the early morning rush hour at Jerusalem’s central bus station. The attacker was restrained by a security guard until police arrived to detain him.

DEBKA Newsletter, January 18, 2016

DEBKAfile Special Analysis
After a weeklong manhunt, special police forces ran to ground Natash Melhem, who murdered three people in Tel Aviv. When called to come out and surrender, he starting shooting and was killed in the exchange of fire. Initial interrogation of five accomplices revealed that he was part of an Islamic State cell. They had guarded him in his hideout, brought him food and attended to his other needs.
DEBKAfile’s counterterrorism analyst reports that Israel’s “signal intelligence” resources were strained to the limit to locate the fugitive terrorist. It was a blunder by one of Melhem’s close helpers in making a call on the cell phone stolen from the murdered taxi driver that ultimately pinned him down. It would seem that the police Yamam commando team selected for the initial confrontation with the gunman should have been told to disable him and bring him in, to draw out further information about additional ISIS cells. The marksmen nonetheless aimed at his head and upper torso instead of his legs. Were they acting on orders or did they miss their aim and kill him by mistake?

Two Palestinians shot dead before they slashed a soldier

A pair of terrorists came up to a soldier manning the Beka’ot checkpoint with large knives Saturday. They were shot dead before the caused injury.

Palestinian shot in attempt to stab a soldier near Hebron

A terrorist who tried to stab a soldier on patrol in Bet Arnun in the Hebron district was shot and critically injured. Another terrorist was shot dead, according to Palestinian sources, during a clash with Israeli soldiers at Bet Jalah near Bethlehem.

IDF officer injured in stabbing attack near Nablus; terrorist killed

A Palestinian terrorist stabbed an IDF officer near Mt. Ebal in the Nablus area on Thursday afternoon. The officer sustained minor wounds, and the 17-year-old terrorist was shot and killed.